Zotigh

What did these Kiowa Gourd dancers know of the Gourd Dance at their time?

I would love to know.

It was soooo much more than we know today.

Most certainly they'd know the story of the Red Wolf. Similar to the one we know today. Although the words they know would be much much closer to the original than the watered-down story our generations were raised with.

A long time ago...

A Kiowa warrior became separated from his hunting group and became lost. After much time seaching his way and reaching the limit of his strength and will, he fell exhausted upon the ground on a small hill. After some time he heard over the hill the sound of singing.

He pushed himself to crawled up the hill and peered down into a small camp where he saw a Red Wolf standing on hind-foot dancing and singing song after song shaking a gourd rattle.

Mesmerized, the warrior forgot his desperation and listened to the dance and songs revealed to him by the Red Wolf. Long into the morning he listened and, after some time, the Red Wolf beaconed the warrior down to him and spoke to him teling him to take the song and dance back to his people and know that, just as it had sustained and kept his spirit alive when all seemed lost, that it would keep his people's spirit alive from now and in the future.

The Red Wolf gave the warrior his gourd, and the Kiowa warrior ventured off to find his way back to his people. After some time, the warrior found his way back, and upon finding his way back and knowing he was home, he greeted his friends and spoke his story, and then fell to the ground and planted the gourd into the ground. And to this day, many Kiowa elders can point to the tree that grew at that spot.

The Red Wolf is the founder of our dance. He gifted the dance to us and we gift the dance in turn to others. The medicine moves amongst us that way.

The folks that just take the dance for themselves get to dance. woohoo! They don't get any medicine from the dance. (I wonder if it is still 'woohoo!' for them or is it just 'dress-up' party?)

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Scott Zotigh
Kiowa Black Leggings
Kiowa Gourd Clan
Kiowa Tiah Piah
Kiowa Marine Veterans
American Indian Veterans